In order to determine the true value of an asset, it is necessary to first subtract the price of every liability that the asset holds. Any possession owned by a corporation, individual or country that holds economic value can be classified as an asset. When a company reports the value of its assets on the balance sheet, assets cannot be considered without taking any obligations and debts associated with them into account.

Once every liability has been subtracted from the base asset value, the remaining value can be interpreted as the asset’s equitable value; however, depending on the context, the term can be defined in a number of slightly different ways.

Real Property Value

Equity can be calculated in order to determine the amount that a homeowner would earn from selling their home after fully paying off their mortgage; within this context, whatever remains is defined as real property value. To calculate real property value, the amount of debt yet to be satisfied on a homeowner’s mortgage needs to be subtracted from whatever the fair market value of the property is.

Ownership Value

In terms of a company’s balance sheet, value would be accurately defined as the amount of funds that all shareholders have contributed when accounting for the losses; this is oftentimes called shareholder’s equity.

When considering an individual or company’s ownership interest in the form of securities, the remaining value is referred to as private equity. Ownership interest cannot be accurately defined unless the full impact of any and all obligations associated with it have been calculated.

Similarly to how real market value can only be accurately determined by calculating the remaining mortgage that needs to be paid, a business’s ownership value is a measure of how much money remains after it has repaid all of its creditors following liquidating. The equitable ownership value of a business that is calculated after it goes bankrupt is sometimes called its risk capital.

The Process Of Calculation

In all contexts, there must be an equation that factors in the collected value of anything that is owned minus any necessary overhead costs in maintaining said possessions. In addition to simple overhead costs, possessions and capital goods might also have their value determined after subtracting whatever debts have yet to be paid.

If an individual wants to determine the value of a business that they own, then they’ll have to consider whatever the gross amount in wages that they owe their employees. In addition to employee wages, the business owner will also need to consider any loans that they took out in order to establish the business in the first place. If the business owner happens to owe his suppliers anything for the raw materials he’s received to produce his goods, then these will fall into the same category as the amount he owes his creditors and employees.

The sum total of everything that the business owner owes will be subtracted from the sum of his accounts receivable, the value of his business’s equipment, the inventory value and the overall value of the business’s property.